Did Hawke-Keating Government (1983-1996) Represent a Fundamental Break with Labor Tradition?

The Hawke-Keating government of 1983-1996 did, to some extent, represent a fundamental break with Labour tradition. The 1980s and 1990s saw the triumph of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) as a governing party and its victory in four successive elections. It has been suggested that this was a "regenerated" Labor Party, which aspired to reform and reshape the traditional basis of Australian politics. Furthermore, the ALP government of this period has been highly criticised for its addressing of some issues, such as privatisation, deregulation of labour and financial sectors, tariff reduction, welfare reform and its international policies . These can be seen as examples of the way the ALP broke away from fundamental Labour traditions and ideologies. …